Various devices and methods have been utilized to assist in conducting bodily fluids. For instance, blood pumps with inflow and outflow cannulae assist the heart in circulating blood in a patient experiencing congestive heart failure and a transplant organ has either not been located or the patient is not a suitable candidate for the transplant. Accordingly, the blood pump may be fluidically attached to the left side of the heart and then located remotely, such as subcutaneously or submuscularly in a manner similar to a pacemaker, in what is referred to as a “pump pocket.” The pump pocket may be generally located at a position that is accessible by a surgical incision from below the collarbone, over the pectoral muscle, and toward the breast. A cannula may then be used to fluidically couple the heart to the pump. In still another example, a cannula is inserted into the bladder or kidney, such as in dialysis or urinary obstruction or infection.
Yet, known conventional cannula designs are susceptible to obstruction by adjacent biologic tissue. Therefore, there is a continuing need to develop cannulae to address these and other challenges associated with conventional cannulae and supplemental fluid flow systems.